Case Law Details
Mohammed Aslam Son of Abdul Rashid Vs Union of India (Rajasthan High Court)
Under Section 15(I)(a)(iiia) of the Act of 1967, the smuggling of gold with intent to threaten or likely to threaten the economic security of the country is very much covered under the smuggling of “any other material” Thus, the contention of the petitioner in this regard is not tenable.
The offence under the Customs Act for smuggling of gold and the offence under Section 16 of Act of 1967 are distinct offences, hence, separate prosecutions are maintainable under the law. Therefore, merely on the basis of prosecution under Customs Act, the impugned FIR cannot be said to be violative of the provisions of Article 20 of the Constitution of India and Section 300 of Cr.P.C.
The offence, herein, is very serious in nature for which stringent provisions for bail have been made to the effect that no bail can be granted unless the Court comes to the conclusion that no case is made out against the accused-petitioner. In the facts of the case, the petitioner is not entitled for any sort of interim protection and the same would have the effect of anticipatory bail which is not permissible.
It is not desirable to meticulously examine the merits of the case at this stage. Therefore, without expressing any opinion on merits, suffice it to say that the NIA is empowered to register a case under Section 16 of Act of 1967 for the Terrorist act as defined under Section 15 of the Act of 1967.
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